Israel is making “immediate preparations” for the possible deployment of an aid delegation to Venezuela, the Foreign Ministry said Thursday, as thousands of people are potentially missing following powerful earthquakes in the South American country.

Separately, a number of Israeli nonprofits said they were mobilizing to respond to the devastating quake in Venezuela, with at least 164 people declared dead and many more feared trapped under the rubble.

The Foreign Ministry said it is “conducting a situational assessment with the relevant authorities in Israel and is examining possible avenues for assistance.”

There is currently no knowledge of any hurt or missing Israelis in the country amid the natural disaster.

The pledge comes despite Israel not having diplomatic ties with Venezuela.

Venezuela broke diplomatic ties with Israel over Operation Cast Lead in Gaza in 2008-2009, and under then-leader Nicolas Maduro, it has been one of the world’s most vocal countries in its opposition to Israel’s conduct in the war in Gaza sparked by Hamas’s October 7, 2023, terror invasion.

However, Israel has expressed hope for better ties with Caracas since the US captured Maduro in January.

Israeli nonprofit NATAN Worldwide Disaster Relief said Thursday it was sending an emergency team to Venezuela.

Six to eight professional volunteers, including medical and social workers, will deploy to the South American country and open mobile clinics “wherever needed,” the organization told The Times of Israel.

Israel’s ZAKA emergency response organization said its teams in the United States, Mexico and Israel are preparing to possibly be sent to help local authorities rescue people from the rubble.

The organization said that as of Thursday afternoon, it had not received information of casualties among the country’s small Jewish........

© The Times of Israel